


how you've grown

by fog_mind



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Childhood Friends, M/M, Reunions, college kid!oikawa, firefighter!iwaizumi - Freeform, they meet after 12 years of being apart basically
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-11-27
Updated: 2020-11-27
Packaged: 2021-03-09 18:47:27
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 14,488
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27731008
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/fog_mind/pseuds/fog_mind
Summary: 'hi we were friends as kids and now you're really hot and idk how to act around you'
Relationships: Iwaizumi Hajime/Oikawa Tooru, Minor or Background Relationship(s)
Comments: 44
Kudos: 111





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> i started this fic in 2015 and have only just found it in my files and i thought i would revamp it a lil bc i miss oikawa and s4 without him is tough. is this kinda cringey? probably but cringe culture is dead 
> 
> hope u enjoy!!!!! <3

Oikawa Tooru wasn’t exactly a lonely eight year old. Sure, he had friends but they weren’t best friends. They weren’t kids you could watch old alien movies with. They were the bug-catching type, Tooru wasn’t keen on bug catching. Other boys like bug catching, Tooru preferred Space Rangers. None of the boys in his class at school like Space Rangers.  
They always told him he looked too much like a girl so they couldn’t play Space Rangers with him, no matter how many times Tooru told them he was a boy and that Space Rangers was cool.

Eight-year-old Tooru spent a lot of time wondering why the other boys didn’t like im, why they didn’t play with him. He wasn’t mean, like most boys. He didn’t punch people, like most boys. He wasn’t dirty, again like most boys. He just didn’t understand why boys didn’t like him.

Tooru’s mother noticed this a lot. She noticed every little sigh and frown that the boy gave when he saw others playing in the street. She often asked why he didn’t join in, but he just shrugged and went back to his book or tv show.

When Tooru’s mother asked his father about it, he just told her that she had nothing to worry about and that Tooru would eventually open up and make friends with people. It was an age thing according to him. 

Still, she watched her son sigh and frown and gaze at the other playing children. She did her best to take her baby’s mind off things like that, children that young shouldn’t have to worry about things like making friends. She always thought it came naturally to children, but she guessed her little Tooru was different. He was sweet, kind, polite; she really didn’t understand. 

He had always been a little different. He didn’t watch new cartoons, just the old sci-fi movies that his father showed him. He didn’t read many books, but the ones he did were about space and other worlds and alternative realities. Things eight-year-old children shouldn’t understand, but Tooru had a grasp of them. He was a clever boy.  
Tooru did well in school, even though he was only young, he was achieving grades that of children a few years older than him, something his mother had always been proud. After any test, Tooru would come running home, waving his paper about and sticking it up on the fridge for any passerby to see. His father always had a hug and a hair ruffle in store for him whenever he did.

Tooru sometimes told his parents that he deserved a treat for such hard work. It was usually an extra serving of pudding with dinner, or even a trip to the museum if he did extra well. 

Other than doing well on tests, the Oikawa parents didn’t really hear much about their son’s school life. He didn’t come home with stories of adventures with friends. He didn’t gush about what a friend is doing over the holidays. He didn’t mention any classmate to his parents, but he seemed happy enough being by himself.

Tooru kept himself to himself when it came to school.

It didn’t worry his parents, as he had always been this way, but they did often ask him if he enjoyed school. The answer was always the same.

“It’s fine, I like it.”

Nothing more, nothing less

The Oikawa parents worried about Tooru, just like any other parents would worry about their child, but it was more concerning when you were worried about the child no having friends and not enjoying school.

It was a bone-deep ache that settled in their chests. How many hours of sleep had they lost worrying? How many countless days spent with Tooru at the forefront of their mind and whether or not he was enjoying school.

It was a problem that they couldn’t fix. 

-  
In the summer holidays, Tooru spent most of his time by himself, exploring the forest at the back of the house, dipping his feet into the cool stream and trying to catch little fish to show his parents. He spent a lot of time laying in the grass, staring up through the leafy canopy, reaching his hands up and trying to grasp the sunlight between his slim fingers.

Tooru often found himself thinking, a pastime he had grown good at. He had a talent for talking to himself and providing decent conversation.

Today was like no other for Tooru. The summer heat surrounded him, pressing against his pale skin. A gentle breeze ruffled his silky hair and the hem of his t-shirt.

He had told his parents that he would be home in a few hours and not to worry about him, but they did that anyway. He said he’d be home for lunch, but he didn’t know when he’d be back.

He sat down in his usual spot, deep purple wisteria hanging overhead, a blanket of grass below him. Tooru always smiled at the sight of it. He brushed his pale fingers over the taller grass, laughing softly as it tickled his smooth skin, his knees gliding past the irises that grew lower down.

He sat down, stretching his legs out before spreading his arms out wide, laying back in the grass. Tooru took a deep breath and grinned up at the wisteria tree, watching some of the petals float down, a few landing on his shirt and in his hair as he giggled into the breeze.

His laughter died down as he took deeper breaths, letting his arm fall back to his side and closing his eyes.

The silence made Tooru think, his thoughts filled his own silence. He thought about the boys in his class and how mean they could be. His mother always told him they never meant to be mean, but Tooru didn’t really believe her.

He thought of how he sat at lunch, alone and quiet, watching the other boys play games, that he secretly loved but didn’t try to show it. Whenever he asked to join in, they said ‘the teams would be unbalanced’ or that he ‘wouldn’t understand it.’

Tooru felt his cheeks grow hot and his eyes well with tears.

It wasn’t fair. How come other boys had friends? How come he wasn’t allowed to play? Why was that fair? Tooru wasn’t mean, he didn’t laugh at people, he wasn’t dumb.

He felt hot tears run down his cheeks as he covered his eyes with an arm. His sobs grew louder as he recollected every time he was told to go away by a boy, by someone he thought could be a friend.

“Hey, dummy! You’re gonna scare the beetles away if you cry any louder!”

Tooru sat up at lightning speed, looking around for the source as he wiped his eyes and nose on his arm.  
“W-Who said that?”

A boy, around his age, walked out from behind a thick tree trunk. His tanned arms, knees and palms were covered in different, brightly coloured plasters. His dark hair was lightly spiked, another plaster was stuck to the side of his right cheek, next to an unfriendly scowl.

His tank top had a large picture of a dinosaur on, his green shorts were covered in dirt, a clear, plastic tank was tucked under one arm and a bright blue net settled in the other.

“Me! Go cry somewhere else or you’re gonna scare my beetle,” the boy told him, his scowl growing in the warm afternoon.

“I was here first, you don’t have to be mean about it.” Tooru retorted, quickly standing up and brushing the dirt off himself, stomping a foot down against the dirt. The other boy just stared at Tooru.

Both boys fell into silence, Tooru rubbing his arm, more out of awkwardness than anything else. The boy just stood there, kicking at the dust near his feet, creating little clouds and covering his shoes in reddish dirt.

“I like your shirt, but dinosaurs are cooler than aliens.” The tanned boy started, pointing to the spaceship on Tooru’s t-shirt. He put his net and tank down by the tree trunk and made his way over to Tooru. He was shorter than Tooru, but only just.

“No way! Aliens are super cool! Dinosaurs can’t go into outer space!”

“Uh, yeah they can!”

“No way!”

“Yeah way!”

Tooru felt himself grinning, looking down at his shoes. He glanced up to see the boy grinning back at him. They burst into laughter and Tooru felt his heart swell. He hadn’t laughed properly in a long time.

After a few moments of laughter, it quietened into soft giggles then fell to silence, the wind rustling the flowers above their heads.

“I’m Tooru, what’s your name?”

“I’m Hajime. I just moved here.”

“Do you wanna be friends?” Tooru asked, writing his hands together, sweat starting to form between his clammy palms.

“Sure, you’re my first friend here.”

Tooru stood there, almost dumbstruck by the boy who had just called him a ‘friend’. Tooru had never had a proper friend before. The realisation thrilled him.

They spent the next few hours playing Space Dinosaurs. Hajime caught bugs and chased Tooru with him, Tooru splashed him in the stream to get him back. When Hajime’s mother came to find him, he introduced Tooru as his best friend. Tooru couldn’t help how his cheeks reddened.

She told him he was always welcome to come round to his house. Hajime told him to meet him in the same place and time tomorrow, Tooru couldn’t agree faster.

He ran home with a grin on his face, not sparing the boys on his street so much as a glance as he rushed past, opening the front door and calling for his mother, shouting about his new best friend and how much fun he had had all day.

His mother came out from the kitchen with a smile on her face, opening her arms and letting Tooru run up to her and hug her tightly, gushing about a boy named Hajime, who was Tooru’s new best friend. She felt tears in her eyes and a strange sense of peace in her heart as her son spoke about the tanned boy covered in plasters.

The next few weeks of summer break went like that. The two boys would meet in the morning, either choosing to meet in the clearing or at one of their houses. The boys were blessed with the fact that they lived only a few doors down from each other so regular sleepovers and play dates were held.

The two mothers quickly became close friends, the fathers becoming fishing buddies. Hajime and Tooru had once asked to go fishing but when Tooru fell into the water and cried all day, the two men weren’t so quick to take them again.

The boys were inseparable. Every day they would their mother if they could go to the other’s house to play (and the answer was always yes.) They looked after each other, it was mostly Hajime helping Tooru get home when he fell over and scraped his knees and hands. Hajime often told him that his legs were too long and that’s why he fell over so much. 

The hot summer days were spent playing, talking and dreaming of aliens, dinosaurs and anything in between. The cooler nights were spent under a blanket fort, torches illuminating the pages of books that they shared with each other.

When the summer drew to a close, the two started school again and Tooru was delighted at the fact that Hajime was placed in his class. Unfortunately, they were on other sides of the room, although that didn’t stop them from making silly faces at each other during lessons.

(They were always caught in the act)

Tooru spent his lunchtimes with Hajime, playing whatever new game they thought up over the lessons before their hour of freedom. They’d run on the grass together, laughing and calling each other made-up names that only they knew about.

One day, as the two were playing, a group of boys ran over, some scowling at Tooru and others smiling at Hajime.

“Hey, Iwaizumi! Why don’t you come play with us? Oikawa is boring, girly and dumb!” One of the boys shouted at Hajime.

Hajime looked at him for a few seconds, a look of almost confusion on his face before looking at Tooru, who had gone incredibly quiet, the boy’s gaze down at the floor.

“No, thanks, Tooru is way cooler than you guys!” He told them, nodding as he spoke before reaching over to Tooru and grabbing his hand in his own before running past the group of boys, Tooru in tow.

“I- Iwa-chan! They’ll be mean to you! You shouldn’t have said that!” Tooru shouted breathlessly, dragging his feet along behind Hajime as they ran.

“I don’t care! You’re my best friend so why would I want to play with those other guys?!” Hajime called back, looking over his shoulder and grinning at Tooru.

Oikawa Tooru had never cried at school before because of mean boys but he definitely cried when Iwaizumi Hajime had told him those few words.

Hajime spent the last twenty minutes of his lunch break calming Tooru down and hugging him as they lay on the grass together, not caring about Tooru soaking his shirt in snot and tears.

As the weather got colder, the two boys limited their time outdoors, as Tooru caught colds pretty easily. Hajime had learnt that the hard way after he spent a week alone at school because he and Tooru had played in the river one day leading to Tooru to become ill and even more whiny.

They spent their days bundled up together watching documentaries and whatever alien film Tooru wanted, Hajime didn’t mind them that much anymore.

Their days were peaceful and full of laughter and warm hugs.

Until Hajime was told by his parents that they were moving again. Hajime’s father worked as an office manager for an estate agency and his company were opening a new branch in Osaka.

Hajime’s father tried to explain to him that it was an excellent opportunity for his company, but Hajime didn’t care about that.

“What about Tooru? He’s coming with us, right?” Eight-year-old Hajime had asked his parents, eyes wide, wringing his hands together, a habit he had picked up from Tooru.

“Sweetheart, Tooru won’t be coming with us, he has to stay with his mummy and daddy, okay?” His mother told him, kneeling down and taking his smaller hands in her own.

“Then I don’t wanna go, I wanna stay with Tooru, he’s my best friend!” Hajime declared, squeezing his mother’s hands.

“No, no, sweetheart, you have to come with mummy and daddy, we can’t leave you here.” She started, dropping one of his hands to stroke her fingers through his hair.

Hajime opened his mouth to respond, but closed it, frowning slightly. “So I won’t be able to see Tooru? What about school? I’m still gonna see him at school, right?”

“No, Hajime, you’ll have to move school, but I know you’ll make friends in no time, you’re good at making friends,” Hajime’s mother spoke softly, cupping both of his cheeks and stroking her thumbs over his tanned skin.

“B- But.. But I can’t leave Tooru! He doesn’t have any other friends! And I already told him I wouldn’t leave him! Mum, I can’t go!” Hajime cried, tears welling in his eyes and he stumbled backwards, pushing her hands off of his face.

“I know you’re upset, honey, but your dad has to move because of his job and we have to go with him, he’d be lonely if we don’t. Plus, you’ll still be able to talk to Tooru, I have his mummy’s phone number so you can call him at any time.”

“B- But that’s not t- the same!” Hajime croaked, wiping his eyes on his sleeve, sniffling as he slowly walked back to his mother, resting his head on her shoulder. “H- How am I g- gonna tell Tooru?”

“Well, we can all go over and I can tell his mummy while you tell Tooru, okay? We don’t leave for another two months so we have a lot of time to tell him.” She told him, rubbing his back softly, kissing the crown of his head. “He’ll understand, baby.”

-

“No! You can’t leave! That’s not fair!” Tooru shouted, tears already streaming down his face, pointing a finger at Hajime. “Y- You said.. You said you weren’t gonna leave!”

“I don’t wanna go! But we have to! Mum said we can call each other, though!” Hajime yelled back, trying his best not to cry in front of Tooru.

“Dummy Hajime! You’re such a meanie!”

Hajime just sniffled in response and quickly moved forward, throwing his arms around Tooru and squeezing tightly.

Tooru didn’t move at first but slowly brought his arms up to wrap around Hajime, pressing his face against his neck and crying openly, sounds muffled by tan skin.

The dimly lit bedroom echoed Tooru’s cries, the soft material of Tooru’s alien printed blanket lay underneath them from where they were curled up on the crying boy’s bed.

“S’not f-fair..”

“I know.. But we can see each other in the holidays.”

That only made Tooru hold on tighter.

“I know, we can make a promise, a promise to see each other and actually stay friends, okay?” Hajime told him quietly, leaning back and letting Tooru lift his head up.

“H- How do we make sure that we both stick to the promise? To make sure you don’t forget about me..” Tooru asked, eyes sparkling with tears. He swiped his sleeve over his eyes, dispersing his tears

“Well.. On tv, it’s usually a kiss.. But we don’t have to do that if you don’t want to.” Hajime admitted quietly, cheeks burning slightly as he pulled his gaze away from Tooru’s face, which went pink quickly.

“No.. Let’s do that.”

Hajime sucked in a breath, eyes continuing to stare down at the blanket between them, pushing his hands against the fabric and fisting his hands tightly into it. “A- Are you sure? 

Not many boys kiss each other..”

Tooru sniffled, wiping his eyes with his sleeve and shrugging slightly. “So? What does that matter, Iwa-chan? We’re best friends so it doesn’t matter, girls do it all the time.”

“Okay, whatever, let’s do this, okay?”

“Okay..”

“Close your eyes.”

“But.. I want to see you..”

“No, dummy, that’s not how they do it on the tv, they always close their eyes.”

Tooru pouted, puffing his cheeks slightly as he nodded and slowly closed his eyes. “Well, that doesn’t matter either.”

“Shut up and keep your mouth still.”

Tooru nodded quickly, clenching his fists on top of his thighs and squeezing his eyes shut tighter. He felt his heart pound hard within his chest, he felt his palms go sweaty with  
anticipation, he felt cheeks redden as Hajime’s lips slowly, ever so slowly, touched his own.

A few seconds of gentle pressure before the shorter boy moved back, his cheeks equally as red as Tooru’s, who was beginning to open his eyes and quickly moved his eyes down to look at his clenched hands.

They stayed in silence for a good few minutes, Hajime’s hands still intertwined in the soft fabric of Tooru’s blanket whilst Tooru’s hands stayed up on the tops of his thighs. 

Cicadas buzzed outside the bedroom window, creating a background hum to the silent room. A background hum to fill the space between the two boys.

“T- That was nicer than I thought it was gonna be..” Tooru told him quietly, almost afraid to let anyone else hear him speak. Only Hajime heard him, and only Hajime needed to hear him.

“Yeah, it was.” Came the blunt reply, Hajime’s cheeks still painfully red against his tanned skin. His grip on the blanket loosened as he slowly moved one of his hands to grasp Tooru’s right one.

“Every time we see each other, we have to do that! To keep the promise, yeah?” Tooru asked, more demanding than asking, his quiet voice lost to the rest of the world. His eyes sparkled in the dim light of the bedroom.

Hajime slowly nodded, silently agreeing with Tooru, silently wishing it could happen again.

Neither of them spoke again for a few minutes, neither of them moved really. Just soft breathing to fill gaps, sweaty palms to soothe anxiety-filled thoughts. Hajime felt his heart lift to his throat when Tooru moved his slim fingers to interlock with Hajime’s shorter ones.

“You promise you won’t forget me?”

“I could never forget you.”

The ‘I love you’s’ were left unsaid but they were there in the tears shed, hands held and soft, comforting words spoken by each boy well into the night.

Twelve years later.

“Tooru! Your bag better be packed or I swear on my life, you will be in a heap of trouble!”

“Mum! It is packed! I finished it yesterday! You should be asking dad if he’s finished!”

“I am finished, Tooru! Stop trying to get me into trouble with your mother!”

Tooru grinned, shaking his head and going back to his phone, typing a reply out to the group chat named ‘SETTING high standards <3’. Tooru prided himself in being a member of the chat which contained 3 people: Oikawa Tooru, Seijou; Sugawara Koushi, Karasun; Akaashi Keiji, Fukurodani.

From Tooru: I know, I said I’m sorry and yes, I know I’m a traitor, but you guys can go without me, right?

From Suga: I don’t know, Tooru, this is a pretty big betrayal, you’re gonna miss meeting Akaashi’s boyfriend for the first time!!

From Tooru: I know, but I can’t help it!! Mum wants me to come with her and dad to visit relatives and stuff (◡﹏◡✿)

From Akaashi: Don’t worry about it, Tooru. Just have fun in Osaka, okay?

From Tooru: Keiiijjiiiiii!!!!! You have to send me LOTS of happy pictures, okay???? ★~(◡‿◕✿)

From Akaashi: I will, it is a shame you can’t meet him in person, though. I’m sure he has a friend he could have set you up with.

From Suga: Ahh that would have been great, Keiji. Well, now I can just look out for me and not Tooru ;p

From Tooru: Mean Kou-chan! Mean Keiji-chan! Still look for me!! (ˆ⌣ˆԅ)

From Suga: That isn’t how it works, Tooru. If I’m there, then I get the lovely friend and you don’t, boo for you

From Tooru: Kou-chan you are the devil in disguise (´°̥̥̥̥̥̥̥̥ω°̥̥̥̥̥̥̥̥)

From Suga: I know ★~(◡‿◡✿)

From Akaashi: I’ve got to go, I said I’d skype Bokuto-san in 5 minutes, he gets antsy if I’m late.

From Tooru: Bye-bye Keiji-chan!!! Say hello to lover boy for me!! ❀(*´◡`*)❀

From Suga: Ask about his hot friends for me!

From Akaashi: I will, don’t worry. Goodnight to both of you.

From Tooru: Nighty night!! ✧･ﾟ:*✧･ﾟ:* \\(◕ω◕✿)/ *:･ﾟ✧*:･ﾟ✧

From Suga: Night!!! (:

From Tooru: Ahhh my mum is calling me!! I gotta go, make sure you find yourself a boy toy while I’m away (◠ω◠✿)

From Tooru: Or at least confess to ur captain!!! its been painful listening to you pine for so long ):

From Suga: I’ll try my best, message us when you get there tomorrow, okay??

From Suga: I’m working on it tooru!!!

From Tooru: Sure will, I might go crazy if I don’t talk to you guys for a week!! A whole week, I can’t believe I have to spend a whole week in Osaka, I’m gonna miss my bed (╥_╥)

From Suga: I’m sure you’ll be fine, just have some fun and relax a little! Who knows? You might meet a super hot toy boy down there for yourself? ;)

From Tooru: Here’s hoping, I gotta go now, Kou-chan!! I’ll miss you!! ლ（´∀`ლ）

From Suga: I’ll miss you too, have fun!! <3 

Tooru went to bed that night and dreamt of a tanned little boy who collected beetles, preferred dinosaurs over aliens and stole his very first kiss.

-

Tooru didn’t mind planes. He preferred trains over planes any day of the week, but he didn’t fancy the 6 or so hours needed to get from Miyagi to Osaka on trains. He liked the freedom of trains, the dulled clicking of the tracks beneath metal cars. He liked the quiet murmurs of people excited for their destinations, the hushed whispers between friends, lovers, family. He liked the time he could spend spaced out, thinking of far away things before letting his thoughts rush back to reality.

He liked planes, he liked the sights. He liked looking down over towns, cities and everything else that they passed over. He liked being able to not worry about changing flights like you had to do with trains. He liked the chatter, like trains, the idle talk of places, people, food and anything else people could think of to talk about on a plane. Both were exciting, both were always new experiences that Tooru genuinely enjoyed.

Tooru just didn’t like waiting. He hated the rushing from check-in desks to security. He hated the too warm queues and the wheels of his case dragging against the too shiny floor. He hated, he loathed security checks. It meant taking his jumper, shirt, belt, shoes, watch, scarf, glasses and any other tiny detail that the God awful machines liked to buzz at him for. He hated only having one, small ziplock bag for his face and hair products. He was staying in Osaka for two weeks, which meant he needed a bigger bag than the joke of a bag that he was allowed.

He hated the early mornings, the stressed-out parents, the caffeine-induced headaches he suffered, he hated all of it. Being on the plane wasn’t bad, just the whole three or so hours of pain he had to go through to get on the plane.

So when he finally collapsed on to the comfortable plane seat, he had almost cried in relief. He laid his head back, shutting his eyes and taking a few deep breaths. He let his bag fall to his feet, shoulders sagging as he heard the soft ding of the overhead announcer.

“Welcome aboard flight 459-E8, direct to Kansai International airport. Flight time should be about 2 hours, so sit back and enjoy the flight. Thank you for listening, your in-flight crew will now take you through the safety demonstration.”

Tooru internally groaned as he reached into his bag to find his phone and headphones, quickly shoving them into his ears, blasting whatever pop song was already half played. He winced when his mother smacked his arm and took his earphones out.

“Listen to them, Tooru. It’s important.”

“Mum, I’ve heard it before, it doesn’t change.”

“Tooru, take your headphones out.”

“But, muuu-”

“Finish that sentence and your phone goes out the window.”

“Okay, now who’s breaking the safety rules?”

She rolled her eyes, handing his headphones back and relaxing in her own seat. “I just hope Hajime can put you back on the road to somewhere other than being disrespectful to your mother.”

Tooru frowned, headphones in his lap, tilting his head slightly. “Hajime?”

“You know, Hajime, Iwaizumi Hajime. Your childhood best friend, Tooru. We’re staying with them for the two weeks, I was talking to his mother and she said there was no reason why we couldn’t, she said she’d love to see how you’ve grown.”

Tooru froze, his hands clenching against his thighs. He hadn’t seen Hajime in years, hell, they hadn’t talked in at least five years. A slight panic set in as he stared at his mother.

“I’m excited to see him, too. Apparently, he’s in university to become a sports coach but also training to be a fireman. He works part-time at the local station.” His mother added, nudging his elbow slightly before sighing. “I wish you could do something like that, y’know, get a job and all.”

“I bet he rescues kittens, oh Tooru, can you imagine?” She laughed softly, patting his shoulder and fastening her own seatbelt. “Well, I’m sure you two will get along, you’ve got a lot of catching up to do.”

Tooru just nodded weakly, lying back against his chair and closing his eyes. This was going to be a long two weeks.

-

Osaka wasn’t much different to Miyagi, the weather was similar, both warm and muggy but Osaka seemed to be hotter. Tooru didn’t do warm and muggy. He complained, he got a headache, he started to sweat. And this was just on the way to the rental car. He slumped in the backseat, jacket flung over the seats next to him as he fanned himself. He should be used to the hot weather, but he still hated it. Cold weather was much more his thing because of the hats, gloves and scarves he owned.

“I suggest getting some sleep, Tooru, It’s at least two hours before we reach the Iwaizumi residence.” His father called from the driver’s seat.

Tooru didn’t need to be told twice. He easily fell asleep slumped against the somewhat comfy seats, silently thanking any and every God that he had a chance to rest before meeting up with the Iwaizumi’s. He dreamt of dark skies and running. Running through fields that weren’t familiar, fields that made him feel uneasy. Footsteps echoed behind him as he ran, shouts that he didn’t quite hear, like everything was muted or he was underwater. Then sunlight filled his vision, forcing his eyes shut. The dulled footsteps stopped, a new voice rang in his ear, “Tooru!”, the young sounded young. Bright smiles, black beetles, spiked hair, a wave of familiarity washed over him, engulfing him until it was suffocating.

Then he woke up. His father’s hand on his shoulder, a smile on his face. “We’re here, you can leave your stuff in the car, we can grab it later, okay?”

Tooru nodded in response, rubbing his eyes and stifling a yawn behind his palm. He slowly climbed out of the car, smiling sleepily as he looked over the house.  
It was an old, traditional-looking house, a lit up front porch with a few potted plants dotted around and a well-kept garden out front. The surrounding garden is blooming. Bedding plants from begonias to sweet peas to lobelia, all brightly coloured and in full bloom.

Tooru felt a smile pull on his lips, the garden seemed to suit the Iwaizumi family well, well kept and pretty. Tooru always remembered Hajime’s mother to be stunningly pretty; dark hair that fell over her shoulders, warm honey eyes, a soft voice, caring smile. Hajime’s father was tall, that’s what Tooru remembered when he was 8. A towering man with a kind smile and hearty laugh, dark green eyes and tanned skin. 

Now, Hajime’s mother hadn’t changed much. She was still stunningly pretty. Her dark hair was longer, not holding any grey hairs, plaited over her shoulder. Her smile grew as she saw Tooru’s mother and father walk up the path, her kind eyes shining as she hugged his own mother. Hajime’s father was still tall, taller than Tooru. His reassuring presence and warming, laugh still there as he shook Tooru’s father’s hand and kissed his mother on the cheek. They were how he remembered, there was an odd feeling to that.

They both beamed when they saw Tooru, rushing over and hugging him in turn, gushing about how he had grown, fawning over the fine man he had become (Hajime’s father) and how pretty he had stayed (Hajime’s mother). He just smiled and thanked them for letting his family stay. His chest warmed as nostalgia took over, as happier memories flooded his body.

“I’m afraid Hajime won’t be back until later, he got called out by the chief at the station, something about trees and kittens. Such a cliché but he loves it.” Hajime’s mother, Minako, told the Oikawa family.

Tooru fought the urge to roll his eyes at the cliché, it was just such a dumb, Hollywood movie trait that he hated. Okay, he loved chick flicks and all the cliché moments like kissing in the rain, high school jocks falling in love with the cheerleader, or better yet, the quiet kid. He loved that stuff, but this was too much for him.

The Oikawa family were ushered in, sat in the living room and treated to all sorts of food that Tooru had loved as a kid. Hours were spent talking, laughing, reminiscing, just relaxing and catching up in general. Their dog, Taro, came and lay by Tooru’s feet about two hours into their talking. He was getting old, but he still played like a puppy, according to Hajime’s father, Kenji. Hajime had been given him for his twelve birthday and he had been with him ever since. Tooru thought the German Shepard suited him somehow.

As the sun was setting, Tooru heard the rumbling of a car engine, he watched Taro’s ear perk up, tail suddenly wagging as he got up and rushed off to the door. Tooru glanced around, Minako was standing up and following Taro.

He heard the door open, a call of “I’m home!” echo into the living room, a deep voice that Tooru seemed drawn to. His palms felt sweaty, but he wasn’t sure why his chest felt tight.

“Ahh, Hajime’s finally home,” Kenji announced, standing tall and following his wife into the hallway, greeting his son.

Tooru heard soft laughter and a steady, “Easy, Taro, yeah, I get it and yes, I’m happy to see you too.” His hands shook so he clasped them together in some form of hope that they wouldn’t shake anymore. He was wrong.

It had been twelve years since he had seen Hajime, since he had seen the boy he kissed one summer's evening. Twelve years since things changed for him. He had tried to lie to himself after Hajime had left. When he turned thirteen, he grew more interested in people and he tried to convince himself that he liked girls, girls were nice and warm and cuddly to him. But deep down, he always thought he his eyes lingered on the boys in his class, the boys in magazines, just boys in general.

When he turned sixteen, he got a boyfriend, someone from his class who he was pretty comfortable with, someone who he thought was the same as him. They held hands, kissed and all sorts of couple stuff. He told Tooru that he loved him but Tooru could only think of bright plasters and bug nets. They broke up shortly after that.

Twelve years changed people. Sometimes for the worse, but the twelve years had aged Hajime beautifully and Tooru felt his breathing stop when Hajime strolled in through the doorway, a smile on his face and Taro at his heels.

He was shorter than Tooru expected, he had his mothers height but his father’s features. His strong jawline was the first thing Tooru had his eyes on, his bright eyes sliding over the Oikawa family but stopping on Tooru. He noticed the little smudge of dirt covering his left cheek, the soft dusting of freckles over both cheeks, the eyelashes that fanned out on to his tanned skin. The tiny flecks of gold deep in the forest green eyes. Tooru didn’t want awkward eye to eye contact and quickly looked away, taking in his broad shoulders, tight t-shirt and Jesus Christ, his biceps oh my Go-- He took a deep breath. Nice arms. He glanced over Hajime and felt his cheeks warm up as he brought his eyes back up to his face, to find that Hajime was still staring at him, the slightest pink tinge to his cheeks.

“Oh, Hajime! It’s been so long since we’ve seen you! You’ve become quite the man, you could teach Tooru a thing or two.” His mother joked, getting up and hugging the other boy tightly. Hajime seemed to snap out of his little trance rather quickly as he laughed and hugged her back. Tooru watched as his father did the same, hugged him, cracked a joke then looked back at Tooru.

Tooru, who just smiled and nodded in recognition, felt so stupid. What was he supposed to say? Hi, how are you? Sorry, I haven’t spoken to you in twelve years but y’know, shit happens. He didn’t trust his voice to say anything nice, he didn’t make any comment when Hajime excused himself to wash up and get changed.

Tooru kept quiet when he came back, in a fresh set of shorts and a random t-shirt. He tried to keep his eyes off Hajime, he was something Tooru had never expected. His fingers itched to message his friends back home and tell what the hell had happened to the boy who was his first kiss. That he was suddenly now hot.

“Why don’t you take Taro for a walk? You can take Tooru and you guys can catch up, it’s been so long since you’ve spoken!” Hajime’s mother spoke up, sitting back down at the table, handing her husband another beer. 

Taro heard the word ‘walk’ and was instantly all over Hajime. The boy nodded, standing up and gesturing to Tooru to follow him out the room. Tooru clenched his fists, his palms becoming clammy again. He did follow the other boy, ignoring his mother’s call to play nice.

They both stayed silent until they left the house, Taro happily by Hajime’s side. It wasn’t awkward but the silence felt loaded. Like something was ready to burst. A liquid threatening to spill over the rim.

“I’m so fucking annoyed you’re taller than me.”

Tooru was startled out of the silence, turning and staring at Hajime with wide eyes. He regained himself quickly, laughing and waving his hand over their heads, measuring them with his hand.

“Well, I was bound to be taller, you told me my legs were too long once, they’ve finally come to good use.”

“Still trip over them? I remember that happening a lot.”

“I do not, I’m very graceful, actually.”

Hajime smirked, turning his head away to hide a laugh, much to Tooru’s dismay. 

“Sure you are.” 

The silence fell back over them as they took a right turn into a park. Hajime bent down and unclipped Taro’s lead, letting the dog run off over the grass. The shorter boy sat down on a bench off to the right, not taking his eyes off Taro. Tooru sat down next to him, hands carefully placed in his lap. He was so aware of every tiny movement. Was he always like this?

“So, what’s been happening the last few years? It’s been, what, five years since we last spoke?” Hajime asked, his breath clouding slightly in the cold night air.

“Well, I graduated high school, obviously, then I started college. I got a sports scholarship for a college near me and I’m doing sports science.”

“Wow, sounds impressive. What sport did you get a scholarship for?”

“Guess.” Tooru looked over at Hajime, a smirk on his face. It was wiped away when Hajime looked back over at him, dark eyes looking over him before looking back up at him.

“Well, it’s not baseball, you’re too skinny for that,” he ignored Tooru’s noise of protest, “something fancy, fencing or some shit like that.”

“Fencing? That’s so random y’know. I play volleyball actually, and I’m not even that skinny. You’re just extremely muscular.”

Hajime raised an eyebrow at that, looking over at Tooru’s face but the other had looked away to stare at Taro. Hajime saw the blush on his cheeks but chose to stay quiet.

“Enough about me, I heard you’re a fireman, such a hero, Iwa-chan.”

“I’m sorry, Iwa-chan? What the fuck?” Hajime looked like he had been spat on, staring at Tooru.

“I’m just reminiscent of our younger days.”

Hajime shook his head, stroking Taro as he ran over, picking up the stick he had dropped and throwing it across the grass with a small grunt. Tooru ignored it.

“It’s just volunteer work, I like it. I’m doing sports coaching at college, also volleyball based funnily enough. I used to play but focused more on the coaching because I was better at explaining it, I think. My high school told me I was always welcome back to coach the team if I needed experience.”

“That’s good of them, I wanted to coach but I couldn’t give the game up just yet, maybe after an Olympics or two,” Tooru sighed happily, leaning back against the bench, looking up into the dark sky.

“Two? You could do three with my coaching,” Hajime replied, keeping his eyes fixed on Taro, trying to keep his wandering eyes fixed on something other than Tooru and how he looked in the soft streetlight. 

Tooru grinned, his chest feeling full, his heart racing. “We should play while I’m here, I wanna set for you,”

“Of course you’re a setter, how annoyingly fitting for you.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?” 

“Of course I’ll throw the stick for you, Taro, excuse me,” Hajime stood, ignoring Tooru’s cry of ‘Iwa-chan!’, bending down and picking up the stick, throwing it again across the grass. 

They stayed chatting in the park for an hour, which turned into two. They only came back when Hajime’s mother rang him telling them that dinner was almost ready.

As soon as they returned home, Tooru grabbed his phone from his backpack, reading through some of the messages from his group chat but ultimately ignoring them to send his own.

From Tooru: youll never guess what my childhood friend looks like 

From Suga: oh god is he ugly?????????

From Tooru: the complete opposite, he’s so hot its genuinely unfair how hot he is 

From Suga: PICS OR IT NEVER HAPPENED

From Akaashi: how was the trip Tooru? And isn’t it good that he’s attractive?

From Tooru: keiji-chan of course its good but im here for 2 weeks and idk how im meant to cope with it, he’s a part time fireman????? What 20 yr old is a part time fireman ?? 

From Suga: obvs a hot one, ask if he has hot friends keiji wont ask his bfs friends its unfair 

From Akaashi: It never came up in conversation I’m afraid. I can ask next time I see him

From Tooru: OMG keiji-chan u met him yesterday how was it??? Is he as dreamy as u said??? ʕ•́ᴥ•̀ʔっ 

From Akaashi: I didn’t use dreamy, but yes I suppose he is dreamy. I had a lot of fun, I’m seeing him again soon, he had to go back to college for a few days but hopefully not for too long

From Suga: jealous keiji ): altho im seriously tooru pics or it never happened 

From Tooru: he sounds so lovely omg!! but i’ll do my best!! Okay i gotta go im eating but ill try for a pic later 👋≧◉ᴥ◉≦

From Suga: bye bye tooru-chan  
Tooru smiled down at his phone, shoving it in his pocket and heading back into the house. He headed into the kitchen, “Can I do anything to help?” He asked, smiling at Hajime’s mother.

“Don’t be silly, honey, go and sit down! Hajime’s got you a beer, if that’s okay?”

“That’s fine with me,” he stroked Taro, who was sat watching Iwazumi-san cooking before heading into the dining room. Hajime was sat with Tooru’s parents, laughing at something his dad had said. Tooru took a moment to admire Hajime. He had grown into a very handsome young man. Corded muscle underneath tanned skin, biceps straining against his t-shirt sleeves, dark eyes, handsome smile. It was enough to kill Tooru. 

His mother caught him lurking in the doorway, beckoning him over to sit next to Hajime. He moved over, taking the empty seat next to him. Hajime set a beer down in front of him, he had never really drank beer before, he was more of a spirits guy but he opened the can and took a mouthful. He made a face that his dad laughed at.

“Tooru isn’t really a beer drinker, can you tell?” His dad teased, pinching his cheek from across the table. 

Tooru pushed his hand away, rubbing the pink spot now occupying his cheek. He glanced at Hajime, who was smirking around the neck of his beer.

“Yeah, it’s kinda obvious.”

Tooru felt his phone buzz in his pocket but ignored it in favour of taking a long drink from his beer. He tried his best not to grimace but his dad still laughed, he heard Hajime laugh as well. Not a good start. 

He did his best to cover the pout on his face with another sip of beer and another slight grimace due to the taste.

“I can get you something else if you want?” Hajime offered, bumping his elbow against Tooru’s gently.

“It’s fine, Iwa-chan, I feel like I’m old enough to get used to the taste of beer,” Tooru smiled, ignoring his dad’s amused face. 

“Iwa-chan, that brings back memories,” his mother gushed, sighing softly, “you used to always call each other such cute names.” 

Both of the boys stared at Tooru’s mother, then flicking their gaze to each other, raising an eyebrow to one another.

“Yes you did, stop pretending. Tooru would never shut up about his Iwa-chan, and I know you used to call him Tooru-chan to your mother. She would tell me,” Tooru’s mother grinned, laughing behind her hand when Hajime went red. 

“You used to call me Tooru-chan? How cute,” Tooru smirked, knocking their shoulders together. He felt Hajime tense slightly at the first contact but then relax and shove him back.

“It only happened once, shut up,” he growled around his beer, taking a long drink from it. That shouldn’t have been as attractive as it was.

The rest of the night was spent eating, drinking, and reminiscing. Tooru and Hajime were both embarrassed equal amounts by their parents and the stories they were recounting. 

They were even forced into a group selfie that Tooru’s mum was trying to take before Tooru took the phone and took the selfie for them. He glanced at it, making sure Hajime was clear in it before sending it to his own phone. He quickly sent it to his groupchat with a quick message.

From Tooru: that proof enough??? 

From Suga: omg you actually werent lying he is actually hot

From Tooru: mean, i wouldnt lie about how hot he was

From Keiji: He is a very attractive man

From Tooru: so formal keiji-kun

From Keiji: Yes.

From Suga: why r u so lucky???? a hot man that YOUVE ALREADY KISSED and he is just ur type and ur there for 2 weeks so u actually have a chance to woo him i hate u tooru )^:<

From Tooru: suga chan ):

From Tooru: sike ur just bitter and single, jealousy is an ugly disease suga chan get well soon (>‿◠)✌

From Suga: (ง︡'-'︠)ง 

“Who are you texting? Your girlfriend?” 

The voice jolted Tooru out of his trance, he had been staring and smiling at his phone. Hajime was looking over at him, his third beer hanging from his grip. The pair had moved to the end of the table, letting their parents sit closer and drink together. They were slowly growing drunker by the minute, their volume increasing.

Tooru just stared at him, his grasp going limp around his phone. Hajime began to squirm slightly under his gaze, “what?”

“I don’t have a girlfriend, it was just my friends from back home. They were just asking if I was having fun,” Tooru replied, pushing his phone back into his pocket, ignoring the buzzing from it.

“I’m surprised you have friends, really.”

“How rude, Iwa-chan, I’m friendly and lovely and-”

“Modest?” He grinned, taking another drink. Tooru knew his cheeks were pink at this point. He did his best not to let his eyes stay attached to the movement of Hajime’s Adam's apple. 

“I was going to say cool, actually,” Tooru sniffed, turning his head away and taking a drink of his own beer. He was still on his first one.

“Cool? You’re joking. I saw your backpack in the hallway, it’s covered in those shitty patches that teenagers have.”

“All I’m hearing is ‘Oh Tooru, I’m so jealous of your cool backpack’, jealousy isn’t attractive , Iwa-chan.”

“Hmm, whatever you say, idiot.” Hajime had a smile on his face, he was leaning into his palm, how elbow on the table, a relaxed posture. Tooru kept his gaze, blinking slowly, engulfed in the warmth of his eyes and the noise of their parents. He felt his heart clench when Hajime’s eyes flicked down to his lips but as soon as they were there, they were gone. He looked down at the watch on his left hand. 

“It’s getting late, I’ve got work tomorrow, you wanna head to bed? I think you’re in my room,” Hajime told him, draining his beer and crushing the empty can in his hand. 

Tooru could only nod, his throat tight at the sight. 

Hajime got up, saying a goodnight to their parents, Tooru doing the same. They quickly let Taro out into the garden for a few minutes, tidying the kitchen until he wandered back in and settled in his bed by the door. The pair went upstairs, into the room at the end of the hall on the left. It was dark and smelt vaguely of aftershave. Tooru felt his knees go slightly weak. Hajime flicked the lights on and Tooru looked around, taking it all in. A double bed pushed up against the far wall under the large window, dark curtains already drawn. He had a desk against the opposite wall, books stacked high with a laptop sitting in the middle, stickers covering it. A bookshelf and a chest of drawers took up the right side. The bookcase is filled with textbooks, framed pictures, a few trophies on the top shelf. It was a nice room, not messy but more of an organised chaos to it. Tooru took a closer look at the pictures on the bookcase; some were of a sports team, a little Iwaizumi Hajime grinning at the camera. Others were of a team of firefighters in various pieces of equipment, a bigger Iwaizumi Hajime smiling at the camera, his arm around another firefighter. The last picture he saw was one he recognised all too well. 

Before Hajime had left, the families had gone to a festival, letting Tooru and Hajime roam free but promising to meet up for the firework display at the end of the night. They had sat together, huddled close in the cold evening air. Hajime’s mother had taken a photo of them, hands joined, watching the fireworks. It was more of a candid, they weren’t looking at her, only at the bursts in the sky. 

Tooru had the exact same photo framed on his desk. It sat in his stomach, a burning feeling took over. He took a deep breath, turning back to Hajime who had changed into a different pair of shorts and a faded t-shirt. 

“You wanna sleep on the floor or in the bed?” Hajime asked, moving his work uniform and laying it over the back of his desk chair. 

“I don’t want to impose, the floor is fine.”

“Don’t be dumb, the bed’s big enough for both of us, I’m not sleeping on the floor when I’ve got a ten hour shift tomorrow and you’ve been travelling all day. Just get in.”

Tooru blinked at him before laughing, covering his mouth. “So pushy Iwa-chan!”

“Shut up.”

Tooru kept sniggering to himself as he grabbed his pyjamas from his bag. His dad had brought his stuff up earlier. He slipped away to the bathroom, changing and washing his face, brushing his teeth before heading back into Hajime’s room.

He was sat up in bed, an arm behind his head, his free hand scrolling on his phone. Tooru swallowed a lump that sat in his throat, slowly sliding into bed next to Hajime. 

“My alarm is like six am, sorry if it wakes you up,” Hajime told him quietly, plugging his phone into its charger and laying back in bed, taking a deep breath.

“It’s okay, I’m gonna go for a run or something in the morning, I’ll just go when you wake up,” he told him, being just as quiet. He quickly checked his group chat, it was just Suga complaining about a customer at work. He locked his phone and set it down next to Hajime’s.

The bedroom was quiet after that. The only sound being their breathing and the occasional burst of loud laughter from downstairs. Tooru stared at the ceiling, his eyes finding some glow in the dark stars stuck to the ceiling. 

“I got them after I moved, my mum thought it would remind me of you,” Hajime spoke up in the dark, “the stars, I mean.”

“And you’ve kept them ever since, how cute.”

“I can’t get them off the ceiling actually, it rips the paint off so I just leave them. It’s fucking annoying.”

“Oh, I was hoping for a cuter answer than that. Y’know.. I cried so much the week you left that I lost my voice. I couldn’t speak for a week.”

“I bet that was a blessing for your parents.”

Tooru elbowed him in the side, “you’ve become so mean, you know that?”

Hajime just laughed, rubbing his side gently. Silence settled over them, the sound of rustling sheets calming Tooru down.

“I made myself sick because I ran away. I wanted to go back to my old house and one night, I argued with my dad and I ran out of the house in the pouring rain. They found me like five hours later at a random bus stop. I couldn’t get out of bed for a week.”

Tooru tilted his head, looking over at Hajime, the moonlight illuminating his features, his oh so handsome features. Hajime glanced over, also slowly moving his head.

“Guess we both missed each other, huh?” Hajime smiled, too gentle for Tooru’s poor heart. 

“Yeah, guess so. Get some sleep, Iwa-chan, you don’t wanna be sleepy whilst being a hero.”

Tooru looked back up at the ceiling, falling asleep to the sound of Hajime’s breathing. 

It was going to be a long two weeks.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> wow i got this out quick, its not as long as the 1st chapter but the next one will defo be longer. i think i was just on a hot streak and needed to get this out
> 
> hope u enjoy!!!!!

Tooru jolted awake when he heard the unfamiliar alarm so close to his ear. He slowly sat up, rubbing his hands over his face before reaching out for the phone and quickly turning it off. He glanced down at the still sleeping figure next to him, all soft in the dark room. Tooru’s eyes went wide when he realised Hajime had an arm thrown over his waist, his tanned skin a stark contrast against Tooru’s pale t-shirt.

He slowly shifted, trying not to wake Hajime before he could get out from under his arm, his cheeks burning as he moved slightly. He heard a small grunt and then Hajime slowly opened his eyes, pulling his arm back to rub at his eyes. 

“Mornin’,” he grumbled, staying led down for a few moments before sighing softly and sitting up, stretching his arms over his head and groaning as his muscles tensed and relaxed. 

“Morning, Iwa-chan, your alarm scared me, can’t you use a softer sound to wake up? Only you would want the default alarm waking you up,” Tooru complained quietly, nudging him and slowly getting out of bed, copying Hajime’s movements and stretching his arms over his head, his shirt riding up over his stomach slightly. Tooru felt a pair of eyes on the strip of skin above the waistband of his shorts but chose to ignore it, lowering his arms and pulling on a fresh jumper from his suitcase.

“God, how can you complain when you’ve just woken up? You wake up and complain, how the fuck do you do that?” Hajime asked him, picking his phone up and scrolling through a few notifications before also getting out of bed, grabbing the clothes he laid out the night before. 

“It’s a gift I think.”

“I wouldn’t be so sure. I’ll be back, just gonna shower.” And with that Hajime left the room, the door closing quietly and leaving Tooru in the dark. He switched the bedside lamp on, sitting down on the bed again and picking his phone up, instantly going to his group chat.

From Tooru: idk if im gonna survive 2 weeks here with him, how the fuck is someone attractive the second u wake up

From Tooru: he also had like an arm around me when i woke up and it honestly

From Tooru: guys help

From Keiji: Sorry, I was just surprised at how early you’re messaging. You aren’t usually awake at 6.

From Tooru: he had to go to work so i just got up when he did ugh stupid hot good person firefighter 

From Keiji: It is admirable that he’s a volunteer firefighter at such a young age.

From Suga: damn arm around the waist on the first night????? thats kinda gay tooru

From Tooru: i mean yeah i hope so idk if he gay tho i havent asked he did ask me if i had a gf tho bc i was laughing at our chat yesterday and he was like who r u talking to ?? ur gf?? 

From Suga: and you said no im gay and single

From Tooru: i just said no i didnt wanna make it awkward

From Suga: u had a perfect opportunity to tell him that ur gay and u didnt, useless twink 

From Tooru: SHUT UP we were at dinner i couldnt just tell him

From Suga: whatever 

From Keiji: I’m sure it’ll come up in conversation. I wouldn’t worry too much about it, Oikawa-san.

From Tooru: so formal keiji-kun 

Tooru stared down at his phone, sighing softly and letting himself flop back on to Hajime's bed, quickly being engulfed in the smell of him. It just smelt like clean soap and body wash, maybe mint? Tooru closed his eyes and took a deep breath in, letting it out slowly. 

“What are you doing?” 

Tooru jumped about a foot in the air, scrambling to sit up, staring at Hajime who was just standing in the doorway, his pyjamas in one hand and the other on the door handle. He was dressed in a pair of dark blue cargo pants, a matching t-shirt, a small logo on the breast of the shirt. The t-shirt clinging to his biceps, the pants doing the same with his thighs. The t-shirt was tucked into the pants, a belt showing off his waist. Tooru swallowed the lump in his throat. He had a feeling he would doing that a lot in his stay. 

“Just.. relaxing?” Tooru answered, looking Hajime in the face, he couldn’t look anywhere else.

“Sure, relaxing, whatever you say. Get up, I need to make the bed.” Hajime set his pyjamas down on the desk chair, waiting for Tooru to get up before quickly making the bed. Tooru rummaged around in his suitcase for his workout gear, some running shorts, underlayers and a t-shirt. He grabbed his windbreaker as well, just in case.

“I’m gonna go make some breakfast, you want anything?” Hajime asked, picking up a backpack that was near his door, filling it with a few things from his desk. 

“No thanks, I’m gonna go running before I eat, I’ll have some coffee though if you’re making that?” 

“Sure, just come down when you’re ready,” Hajime told him, picking up a pair of boots that were stored under his desk before leaving the room again, closing it quietly and leaving Tooru in the silence. 

He quickly changed, pulling on his clothes and running a hand through his hair, he wouldn’t bother with product before a run. He went to the bathroom, brushing his teeth and washing his face with a cleanser before grabbing his shoes from Hajime’s room and heading downstairs. He could hear soft music and a low voice, was he singing?

Tooru peaked around the corner but frowned when he saw that Hajime was just talking to Taro, stroking behind his ears as he drank from a mug. It was still a cute sight.

“Why are you hiding? People are gonna think you’re weird if you hide around corners.” Tooru jumped at the voice, scowling and entering the kitchen.

“I wasn’t hiding.”

“Sure, the blue mug is yours,” Hajime gestured to the mug on the counter, watching Taro run over to Tooru. 

Tooru grinned and knelt down to let Taro rub his face against Tooru’s, running his hands over his fur.

“You’re such a baby, huh? A good boy,” Tooru told him, nodding and stroking him, watching Taro’s tail wag faster when Tooru spoke. 

Tooru glanced up, blushing slightly when he saw Hajime staring at him, they both glanced away from each other. Hajime going back to his coffee and Tooru standing up to grab his mug. The music from the radio filled the quiet kitchen, Taro slowly making his way back to Hajime, sitting down at his feet. 

“I’ve gotta get going, don’t let my mum show you any albums, okay? I’ll be back at like six or seven,” Hajime told him after draining his mug, setting it in the sink before picking his bag up and heading to the door, Tooru followed, watching him sit down and pull his boots on.

“See you later, have fun saving lives!” Tooru called as Hajime left, waving and grinning when he saw a small wave back as the door shut behind him. Taro stood next to him, a soft whine came from him but he settled when Tooru stroked him. 

“You miss him, huh, baby? Yeah, I guess me too,” Tooru told Taro quietly, who just looked up at him with a slow wag of his tail.

“Now I feel bad about leaving you,” Tooru sat down at the door, pulling his trainers on and tying the laces. He pulled his headphones out of his windbreaker pocket and slipped his phone in his armband, blasting his running playlist as he left, waving to Taro and breathing in the cold morning air. 

Running cleared his head, it settled him. During exam season, he would run during his breaks just to calm himself down and allow time to breathe. His anxiety swelled during exam season, running was one way to help relieve it. 

He settled into a rhythm with the music, feet hitting the floor in time with the beat of the song, like he always did. The cold air felt fresh in his chest, the familiar pace settled his beating heart. 

He didn’t have a set path, he just followed the roads and made his way through the sleepy morning town. The further he ran, the more the town woke up. People went to work, children went to school, life went on as he ran. He passed through a park filled with dogs and their owners, a smile on his face as he recalled this morning when he caught Hajime talking to Taro.

Hajime wasn’t what he expected. He didn’t know if that was good or not. He didn’t know if Hajime being attractive was good or not. Of course, it was good, but Tooru’s heart didn’t know what to do. Was it weird to crush on your childhood best friend? The mangas Tooru read said no, they said it was normal, but they weren’t normal. Tooru and Hajime were both men, he didn’t know if Hajime was gay, or even bisexual. What if he was horrifically homophobic and when Tooru finally works up the courage to tell him, he tells him he’s disgusting and that he wants to be left alone? Tooru didn’t think his heart could take that at all. 

He sighed heavily as he drew to a stop, catching his breath as he walked past a few people. He wiped the sweat off his face and sat down on a bench next to the path he was on. He let his head fall back, looking up and closing his eyes for a few moments. He opened them and stretched, checking his phone and his eyes went wide as he realised he had been running for over an hour. And he didn’t know where he was. And he didn’t know where Hajime’s house was. 

He frowned, quickly googling where the firehouse was, putting the destination into his maps. It was only about ten minutes away. He hoped Hajime was there. 

He started his walk, switching his playlist to some random Kpop group that Suga had told him about once. It was actually pretty good. He hummed along as he walked, ignoring the stares he got from passersby. He made it to the station in just over five minutes, staring at the large building and the huge garage doors connected to it. He was lucky, one of the doors was open and the fire engine had been pulled out, people running around and cleaning the big truck.

He saw Hajime by the front wheels, scrubbing the dirt off the rims. 

“Iwa-chan!” He called, smiling when he saw Hajime turn his head, eyes finding him and sending a little smile his way. Tooru started to walk over, watching Hajime shout at one of the other firefighters who was grinning at him. Tooru saw a blush on Hajime’s cheeks but ignored it.

“What are you doing here?” Hajime asked, standing up and wiping the soap suds on his pants. 

“I got lost and I didn’t know your address to get home,” Tooru admitted, rubbing the back of his neck. He didn’t mean to embarrass him at work, some of the other firefighters had looked over to see what was going on, others were laughing behind their hands. Tooru felt the anxiety crawling up his throat.

“Sorry, I didn’t mean to..”

“It’s fine, ignore them, they’re all assholes,” Hajime raised his voice for the last bit, tilting his head and glaring at the few that had gathered to watch. He took the phone out of Tooru’s hands, typing on his phone for a few minutes, ignoring Tooru’s gaze on him. He pushed the phone back into his hands. 

“I put it in your maps, and I put my number in your contacts so you don’t have to come here again,” Hajime told him, nodding and leaning back against the truck.

Tooru couldn’t help but feel slightly hurt by that in a way. He nodded, ignoring the stinging feeling in his chest, in his eyes. He knew he was annoying, but.. It hurt to hear it.

“I mean like, sorry I put that badly,” Hajime quickly told him, rubbing a hand through his hair, “I mean it’s a long way for you to just come so just text me next time if you need anything, okay?” He told Tooru, tapping his finger against Tooru’s screen. Maybe he could sense Tooru’s mood drop, maybe he could see it in his face but he had instantly made him feel better with the quick clarification. 

“I think you’ve given me too much power with your number, Iwa-chan,” Tooru admitted, smiling down at him, pushing his pocket. 

“Abuse that power and I’ll break your phone, how about that?” 

“So mean for no reason.”

“Now get out of here, you’ve got quite a walk back y’know,” Hajime told him, shoving him gently, turning back to the truck and starting to scrub it again. Tooru saw the redness on the tips of his ears. 

Tooru grinned, waving and started to head off. He slipped his headphones in but he heard one of the firefighters ask Hajime, “So that’s Oikawa? You were right, he is pretty, huh?”

-

Tooru couldn’t settle when he arrived back at the Iwaizumi residence. He showered, had breakfast with his parents who were both pretty hungover. He sat with Taro for a bit while he caught up on social media. His parents and the Iwaizumi parents were going out for lunch but Tooru declined, saying he needed to do some studying. And that was true, but as he waved them goodbye at the door, he knew he needed some advice. 

He closed the door, instantly dialling Suga’s number. 

“Hi, what have you done?” Suga’s voice came through the line, some rustling papers in the background. 

“I didn’t do anything, if you’re gonna be like that I’ll phone Keiji-kun.”

“And he’ll ignore the call.”

“So rude, no I need some advice.”

“About your hot childhood friend? I’d be happy to help.”

“You’re not busy, are you? This could take a while.”

“No, I’m due a break from my books anyway.”

Tooru relayed everything to him. All the details from last night, from this morning, and just everything about Hajime that he could think of. Tooru sat curled on the sofa, Taro next to him, his head on Tooru’s thigh. It took about an hour for Tooru to relay everything and after a few moments, Suga spoke.

“Wow, okay, this is a little heavier than I thought it would be. You met him yesterday, how do you have so much to tell me?” 

“I’m very observant about everything he does?”

“Yeah, that seems right. But, the last bit, he must have told the people he works with about you and from the sounds of it, he thinks you’re hot.”

“Pretty, actually, but what are synonyms when someone hot compliments you?”

“Maybe you actually have a shot?”

“Why do you sound so amazed? I’m a catch, Suga-chan.”

“Yeah, especially with how modest you are.”

“Iwa-chan said the same thing,” Tooru sighed happily, sinking back into the couch cushions.

“I just think you shouldn’t rush it. He might not be out? Or worse, he could be straight and he’s suddenly just realising that he’s in love with you or something. I can imagine that’s a lot for someone to take in. Especially with it being you.”

“Yeah, I think you’re right. I’m ignoring that backhanded compliment by the way. Okay, I'll let you go now, thank you for listening to me, Suga-chan. I need to actually do some work now before I get even further behind.”

“Okay, Tooru, don’t be an idiot with him, give him time and space and who knows? Maybe you’ll end up with a hot boyfriend, huh?”

“I wish, bye bye Suga-chan!” 

Tooru let his phone fall into his lap, running his hands through his hair. He felt Taro lift his head, reaching out a hand to stroke behind his ears gently. 

“What do you think I should do? Do you know if Iwa-chan likes boys? You wanna spill that secret with me?” He asked Taro, “I’ll give you a treat if you tell me, I promise.”

Taro perked up at the word treat, jumping off the sofa and watching Tooru with wide eyes. Maybe that wasn’t his best idea. He made his way to the kitchen, heating up some leftovers Hajime’s mother had told him to eat up, he gave a small piece of beef to Taro and made a coffee for himself. He quickly ate in the kitchen, scrolling through his Twitter feed before heading upstairs and getting his laptop out. He had a few lectures to catch up on and he settled at Hajime’s desk ready for an afternoon of note taking.

His mother came in a few hours later with a plate of fruit and a coffee for him, pressing a kiss to the side of his head before leaving to finish up his notes. The next time someone came in it was Hajime back from his shift. 

Tooru didn’t hear him come in, he had his headphones on listening to his teacher recap vitamin deficiencies and how they affect muscle repair. Tooru suddenly felt two hands slam down on his shoulders, gripping him and shaking him slightly. Tooru’s headphones fell off when he was startled. He span round in the chair, glaring at Hajime, who was laughing, holding his stomach.

“You’re such a child, I drew all over the page because you made me jump!” Tooru whined, looking down at his ruined notes page, a line of black ink spreading out over it. 

“It was just too good of an opportunity to miss out on, plus I was talking to you anyway, I thought you just weren’t listening,” Hajime told him, slipping his backpack off his shoulders and sitting down on his bed, leaning back into the pillows and sighing softly. 

“I had headphones on, I clearly wasn’t listening.”

“Well, I know that now, don’t I?” 

Tooru huffed, looking down at his notes and sighing loudly. He scrunched the page up, ripping it out of his notepad. Thankfully he hadn’t written much anyway. He closed his laptop, stretching his arms over his head and relaxing against the back of the chair. He didn’t realise how late it had gotten.

“How was work?” Tooru asked, pushing himself away from the desk but staying seated in the desk chair, turning his body to look at Hajime.

“It was good, no call outs today so we just did a bunch of maintenance and cleaning which sucks but it has to be done.”

“Sorry for embarrassing you earlier, I forgot that I didn’t know my way around places and I just didn’t know what else to do,” Tooru fiddled with his hands, an anxious habit he had picked up from years of stress and overthinking. 

“It’s alright, sorry if my idiot friends made you uncomfortable. I mentioned you and they all think you’re my secret boyfriend or something,” Hajime admitted, the redness in his ears and cheeks returning. 

“You’re gay?” Tooru asked, staring at Hajime. His heart rate kicked up, his palms began to sweat. What a forward way of asking him, he could almost hear Suga’s voice in his head teasing him. 

“I’m bi, so I guess so? I told them we weren’t dating, don’t worry. I know your girlfriend would be weird if she knew someone thought you were dating someone else.”

“I don’t have a girlfriend, I told you that yesterday.” Tooru couldn’t stop staring at him, Hajime was bisexual. He wasn’t straight. Suga’s voice returned to his head, tell him you’re gay!

Tooru opened his mouth to respond, but he heard their names get called from downstairs. Something about dinner being ready. 

“I’ve gotta get changed, just go ahead and I’ll be down in a few,” Hajime told him, nodding his head to the door and watching Tooru grab his phone before leaving the room.

Why didn’t he tell him he was gay? Tooru stopped outside his room, the door closed behind him. He could hear Hajime pottering around in the room, rummaging for some clean clothes to change into. He wanted to just go back in and set the record straight. The record that he wasn’t straight. Tooru moved and put his hand on the doorknob, taking a deep breath before deciding against going inside. He slowly made his way downstairs, greeting his parents and Hajime’s parents, offering his help in the kitchen before getting told to go and sit down by Hajime’s father.

Hajime came down a few minutes later, Taro hot on his heels. They shared a look across the room, Hajime smiled slightly and ducked his head, moving into the kitchen and coming back with two beers, handing one to Tooru before cracking his own and taking a long drink. 

They all sat down to eat, the night very much going how it had the night before with good food, lots of drink, and more reminiscing. They talked about highschool, sports, the future for their potential careers; Tooru was still set on the Olympics no matter what, Hajime still set on being a sports coach. Their parents joked that maybe they would go to the Olympics together. The pair gazed at each other when they said it, Tooru looking away first to drink from his beer. 

“Why don’t you boys go out? It must be boring staying inside with us, go and have some fun, you don’t have work tomorrow, right?” Hajime’s father told them, nudging Hajime’s shoulder gently.

Hajime nodded, finishing his beer and setting the can down on the table, “I’ve got a class in the afternoon but other than that, yeah I don’t have anything.”

Hajime looked over at Tooru, “you wanna go somewhere?”

Tooru swallowed the lump in his throat. 

“Sure.”

-

They ended up at a hole in the wall bar that wasn’t too busy. It was a weeknight, Tooru hadn’t expected it to be too busy but there were only two other tables of two in there. It was cute really, low lighting, a wide oak bartop running along one wall with countless bottles stacked behind it. Some soft jazz playing over the speakers. Not really what Tooru had expected at all of Hajime. 

“I used to work here during my last year of highschool. It was quiet enough that I could always do work if it wasn’t busy which was pretty good,” Hajime told him, waving at someone behind the bar who quickly waved back. 

A handsome man behind the bar leaned forward, smiling at the pair of them. He looked around the same age as the two college students, a warm smile on his face and short brown hair. 

“Iwaizumi, nice to see you, been a while,” he told him, a teasing tone to it, slowly leaning back and folding his arms over his chest, “and nice to see you again,” he looked over at Tooru, who’s eyes were wide.

“This is Sawamura-san, he volunteers at the same firehouse as me, you probably didn’t see him today but he definitely saw you apparently,” Hajime explained, sitting down on one of the stools drawn up against the bar. Tooru slipped into the one next to him, crossing one leg over the other.

“Yeah, sorry if some of the guys laughed, they’re all assholes about stuff,” Sawamura told him, an apologetic smile on his face. He seemed genuinely sorry about it.

“It’s alright, I don’t mind too much,” Tooru told him, glancing around the bar before settling his gaze back on the man behind the bar.

“Well, what can I get you guys? The usual, Iwaizumi?” Hajime nodded, watching Sawamura pull him a beer from one of the taps further down the bar. The glass got set in front of him with a small nod before his dark gaze moved to Tooru, “and for yourself?”

Tooru quickly glanced over the spirits at the back, “just a vodka tonic I guess,” he shrugged slightly, “oh wait, a vodka lime soda, if you’ve got the stuff?” 

Sawamura smiled and nodded, “course we got it,” he turned away, collecting the stuff and working quickly, setting a tall glass in front of Tooru, watching him take a sip and smiling when Tooru hummed in approval. 

“Just shout if you guys need me, I’ve got some stock stuff to do,” he told them, heading off to the far side of the bar. The quiet jazz settled on them, the very quiet mumble of conversation coming from the two tables of people. 

“Sawamura is actually the reason I joined the fire department actually. We worked here and I mentioned I wanted some other kind of training to keep me fit and he said that he had joined the fire department and said they could always use volunteers so I joined straight away,” Hajime told him, finishing his sentence with a long drink of his beer, watching Sawamaru mess about over some paper and writing a few things down on a pad. 

“He seems like a good guy, reliable,” Tooru committed, watching Sawamura for a few moments before looking back at Hajime, taking a sip of his own drink. 

“Yeah, he’s great,” Hajime smiled, taking another long drink from his beer. Tooru watched him before taking a sip of his own again. 

“Have you ever thought of being like a full time firefighter? And get paid to do it?” Tooru asked, wiping some condensation from his glass on his pants. He had chosen a pair of checked pants with a oversized jumper, a pair of thick boots making him a few inches taller, much to Hajime’s disgust. Hajime was in a simple pair of dark jeans and a white-shirt, a flannel tied around his waist and some sneakers that, unfortunately, didn’t add to his height. The jeans clung to him and the t-shirt showcased his impressive arms. Tooru had to catch himself from staring a few times already.

“I have but I think I’m a better coach than I am a firefighter. I love sports too much to just kinda give it up I think.”

“That makes sense, have you done coaching jobs before?”

“I used to teach middle school kids volleyball on the weekends but when I started college I just didn’t have enough time on my hands and I had to give it up. I had fun though, I go and watch their games every now and then, they’re pretty good.”

“Now who’s being modest?”

“Shut up,” Hajime grinned, shaking his head and finishing his first drink. He called over to Sawamura, who came over and refilled his glass for him, asking Tooru if he wanted anything else. He asked for a cider and swapped the glasses as he finished off the vodka soda that was in front of him. He took a drink of his cider, sighing softly at the taste.

“I haven’t properly drank in so long, I don’t get to in college because of volleyball and it sucks so badly,” Tooru took another sip, wiping the condensation on his pants again.

“How come you picked volleyball?” Hajime asked, shifting slightly in his chair to face Tooru properly, their knees knocking together in the close proximity. 

“I don’t know, I just started playing in middle school and I was just good at it, better than most people at it so I kept with it. I won best setter in my third year in middle school,” he told Hajime smugly, smirking around his glass’s edge.

“Impressive, were you the only one up for the prize? Or was it a sympathy vote?”

“You’re so mean, where’s my nice little Iwa-chan that would protect me from bullies? I know you’re still my little Iwa-chan but the niceness has worn off I think.”

Hajime glared at him whilst Tooru laughed, hitting his knee with the back of his hand, “idiot.”

They stayed at the bar for a few hours, drinking and talking. Everyone else had left when Sawamura asked them to pay up and to start heading home. Their tab wasn’t as big as Tooru had originally thought, Hajime told him it’s because Sawamura doesn’t charge him for drinks. Hajime still paid for all of Tooru’s though, despite Tooru complaining about it and trying to give Sawamura his card. The man just apologised and said it was already taken care of, it had been done when he had gone to the bathroom. 

They stumbled home together, Tooru clinging to Hajime’s bicep to steady himself, fingers slipping under the fabric tight around his muscle, brushing the skin closer to his shoulder. Hajime stayed quiet when he did that, Tooru could see the blush on his cheeks. Tooru knew he was a touchy person, too tactile for his own good sometimes, now was definitely one of those times. 

It had begun in the bar, Tooru extending his fingers to just brush the tops of Hajime’s knees, moving up slightly the more he drank. Hajime didn’t remove them. Tooru squeezed his arm as they walked home, his hand brushing up and down Hajime’s forearm occasionally, gripping him when he stumbled over his own feet. Hajime didn’t stop him. 

They finally reached the house, Hajime telling him he needed to be quiet once they got inside. They entered, saying hello to Taro, Tooru babytalking way more than usual. Hajime led him upstairs, shushing him gently and letting him into his bedroom, closing the door quietly. Tooru flopped down on the bed, feeling the bed sink where Hajime sat down next to him.

“You gotta get changed,” Hajime told him gently, voice softer than Tooru had heard it. He hummed in response, closing his eyes. He felt fingers brush his hair off his forehead, strong fingers running through his hair. Tooru hummed again, turning his head slightly.

“Help me get changed, Iwa-chan, I’m too sleepy to do it,” Tooru slowly opened his eyes, looking up at Hajime who was staring down at him. He saw the other boy nod in response, he watched him get up and reach for Tooru, helping him sit up. He ran his fingers along the hem of his t-shirt, slowly lifting it, telling Tooru to lift his arms up as well. They slowly got his t-shirt off, Hajime’s fingers brushing against his pale skin whenever he came close to him. 

Hajime reached down, pushing Tooru back on the bed. Tooru blinked, staring up at Hajime who reached for his belt, tugging it gently and slowly pulling it off. Tooru spread his legs slightly, automatically, and Hajime took a small step closer, fingers reaching for the button on his pants. His fingertips running along the pale skin again. Tooru’s skin seemed to quiver under his touch, his heart beat racing in his ears. He could see Hajime smirk when he felt his skin squirm under his touch. Tooru closed his eyes, he laid his head back on the blankets. 

“Fuck, careful, Iwa-chan, I’ll start catching feelings if you treat me so kindly, I’m not used to it.”

Hajime’s fingers stilled as they were unbuttoning his pants. Tooru opened one eye, looking at Hajime but freezing when he saw the scowling, blushing face. Tooru reached a hand down, gently pushing Hajime’s fingers out the way and unbuttoning his pants, sitting up slightly to start tugging them off. 

Tooru tilted his head when he kicked his pants off, Hajime still stood between Tooru’s spread legs. They locked eyes, the only sound being their breathing in the dark room. Tooru felt Hajime’s hand on his cheek, his fingers touching his soft skin. He felt his jaw get cupped, a rough thumb swipe over his lips. Tooru kissed it gently. 

It seemed to bring sense back to them. Hajime jerked his hand away, stepping back and away from Tooru. He quickly shoved Tooru’s pyjamas at him, grabbing his own and leaving the room.

Tooru changed and fell asleep before Hajime even came to bed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i think ive got 5 chapters planned for this, 2 down 3 to go !!!!!!!
> 
> comments genuinely made my day and make me write faster <3

**Author's Note:**

> do i add another chapter? i kinda just wanted to get this out bc i like validation from ppl online <3


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